PITTSBURG, Kan.– The UIndy women's track & field team punctuated its stay at the 2022 NCAA Division II Indoor Championships Saturday evening with an historic performance from star-runner
Berenice Cleyet-Merle. The native of France added an exclamation point to the end of her legendary career to the tune of a national-championship-winning performance in the mile, an event in which she was the front runner of all indoor season, having set the DII record last month.
Cleyet-Merle stayed patient early on during the race, holding steady near the front of the pack, not letting anyone get out ahead. But as the race neared its conclusion, the French phenom showed why she was the favorite. Entering that final lap, she was neck-and-neck with Klaudia O'Malley of Grand Valley State, but as quickly as you could say Cleyet-Merle, she took off in the final curve leading to her fastest lap of the race and securing the championship with a time of 4:52.05.
To end the weekend, the Greyhounds shared seventh place in the team standings with 27 points. Their final placement matched a program best while their point total set a new program mark. The Greyhounds ended their weekend with eight All-Americans in all, the most in a indoor season in program history.
The two-day national meet was held at Robert W. Plaster Center in Pittsburgh, Kan., Friday and Saturday.
The mile was not the only race of the day for Cleyet-Merle. Just 90 minutes after winning the mile, she once again toed the starting line, this time for the 3K. Already having a national title to her belt, the 3K presented itself as a cherry on top. She went to notch an All-America showing in her final collegiate race, posting a time of 9:27.87 to take seventh.
FRIDAY
The highlight of the first day came with the women's DMR team of
Eline Pinter,
Emily Sonderman,
Ellie Lengerich and
Berenice Cleyet-Merle battled from behind to cross the line as runners-up. Their time of 11:24.93 shattered the record this same group set on
Feb. 2 of this year, which sat at 11:33.36.
Finishing in the top five as well for her event was
Brittney Clark in the pole vault, climbing the ranks to land in fourth with a vault of 4.05 meters. Her fifth vault didn't just land her upon the podium but also broke her own school record of 4.03 meters which she set on
Feb. 18 at the Flag City Open.
The final podium spot of the first day went to
Zoe Pentecost in weight throw as her first toss of the day hit 19.18 meters, good for seventh.
Lengerich, a true freshman, not only competed as a member of the DMR, but battled in the high jump earlier in the day, placing 16th among the nation's best.
Claire Eaton made her Greyhound debut at Indoor Nationals as well, placing 17th in the 5K with a time of 17:13.61.
The only preliminary race that the Hounds performed in was the mile in which Cleyet-Merle etched her spot in Saturday's final with a second-fastest time of the day (4:46.64).
